Jerry Jones: Never too old to learn

There is an old saying..."the definition of insanity is to continue to do the same things, and expect different results."

Dallas Cowboys Owner / General Manager Jerry Jones must have read that passage prior to Thursday night's draft.

It's no secret that Jones, as a general manager, is the primary reason that Dallas has been a .500 team for the last um-teen years. He's also the reason, as an owner, that the Cowboys have remained Americas Team with his business savvy. Gotta give it up to the man, he is a marketing genius. What continued to get the Cowboys in trouble was the fact that Jones was wearing two hats, and lines often got blurred when it came to being a general manager vs being an owner.

Jerry repeatedly drafted with his heart, acting as an owner in the war room. He would draft "splash" players that he could market, over pay "past their prime" free agents because they could sell jerseys, and set depth charts based on pay...and not performance. I guess he was looking for a return on his investment.

Again acting as an owner...and not a GM.

On Thursday night the Cowboys were on the clock, and home grown Texas legend qb Johnny "Football" Manziel was sitting in the green room. Don't lie, whether you're a Cowboys fan or not, you know you was glued to the tv to hear what came next. Well, the Cowboys selected Notre Dame offensive lineman Zack Martin.

Say What?

Embattled starting qb Tony Romo has now become a punchline in Dallas. Plus he's coming off a season ending back injury. Why would you not take the electrifying Heisman Trophy winning qb? This is Big D, we make big moves down here! Plus, you know the increased revenue from bringing in a celebrity of Manziel's status would be through the roof.

Jones' response to that question told me a lot. His direct quote...

"There's just too much dynamic here for him [Manziel], for the franchise, for everybody. That's just too much for insurance, and it's not the usual development guy behind an accomplished quarterback. He's a celebrity. He's Elvis Presley".

As a General Manager, he hit the nail right on the head.

Romo and Manziel each have their own sizable media circus contingent on their own. Bringing those two circuses together would be too much, even for Big D. TMZ would move their headquarters here, chronicling the qbs every move.

All while keeping score.

1. Who has the better night life?
2. Who has the hotter chick?
3. Who can get the most endorsements?

And that's not even getting into the immediate qb controversy that will ensue on the field. And we all how those seasons have historically worked out for teams. It would just be too much, and financially, it would be too much to invest in one position with so many other wholes to fill.

Who knows how this will ultimately turn out? Romo could have very well seen his last days, and Manziel could turn out to be the rookie of the year. Yes, this could totally blow up in the Cowboys' face. But Jones did what he thought was best for the team, and not the business on Thursday night. He acted as a GM in the war room, and not an owner.

You can call Jerry a lot of things, but you can't call him insane anymore. He did something different this time.

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